


Café con Leche

by pastandfuturequeen



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Spanish Antics, coffee shop AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-06
Updated: 2018-10-06
Packaged: 2019-07-25 23:40:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,739
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16208090
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pastandfuturequeen/pseuds/pastandfuturequeen
Summary: Finn smiles at Poe, a soft thing that causes warmth to spread from his entire body.Karé’s voice rings out across the coffee shop, “Oye Poe, ¿porque no le dices a tu novio que se case contigo lla?”“¡Ponte a trabajar!” Poe shoots back, face red.Or, alternatively - a coffee shop AU with some Spanish antics because Latinos are not subtle.





	Café con Leche

**Author's Note:**

> **My language is not for y’all to fetishize, so if y’all expect Poe to turn into some sexy cabana boy in this fic y’all are not welcome here.**
> 
> \- Now that the fetishizing gringas are out of the way, there are a good couple of chunks of dialogue in this fic that are in Spanish or Spanglish. I’ve added a rough translation of all of these phrases in the AN at the end of the fic (separated by scenes for quick reference), but there might be a couple of things that just kind of get lost in translation. Even without the translations though, I don’t think that it’s enough to really bar anyone from being able to read the fic or understand what’s going on.
> 
> -
> 
> [[Also Posted on Tumblr]](https://pastandfuturequeen.tumblr.com/post/178794150340/pastandfuturequeen-title-cafe-con-leche)
> 
> -
> 
> EDIT (10.8.18): Just wanna give a quick shout out to Ai who helped me fix the grammar mistakes with the Spanish parts and Kaadhu for forwarding that to me, y'all know they never taught me this shit in school asdkjhfaskdjfh thanks love y'all <3

_José, por su parte, desapareció el 23 de abril de 1983. Tenía 25 años y según los testimonios salió de su comunidad en San Martín Jilotepeque, en el departamento de Chimaltenango, hacia la capital. Luego no se supo más de él. En el dossier, José es el número 112. Su seu - su seudó -_

Poe looks up from his textbook, brows furrowed. “¿Doña Maz?” he calls out.

“¿Sí, Poe?”

“What does-” he glances back at the page, sounding out the word slowly, “-‘seudónimo’ mean?”

“Pseudonym.” She emerges from the back of the shop, wiping off some of the flour from her hands on her apron. Doña Maz is a small woman, who moves more slowly now but her eyes remain just as bright and her tongue just as quick as in her youth. She walks over to Poe, peering over at the open book sitting on the counter. “Did you finish your archival work?” she says in a thick Mexican accent.

Poe rubs at his eyes, willing away the tiredness from reading for so long. “Almost. I’ve just got to go through some of the more recent articles and clean up the timeline a little bit.”

Maz clicks her tongue and shakes her head. “The university is killing you slowly with all this work.”

“Sure, but at the end of it all I get to be called Dr. Dameron, so it’s all worth it in my book,” Poe replies.

A bell rings above the door of the coffee shop, turning their heads. “Míralo a éste,” Snap says as he enters the shop, “You still haven’t graduated and you’re already talking about us calling you ‘doctor’ and everything when you’ve still gotta learn Spanish, no jodas tanto, coño.”

“Ya lo sé,” Poe says, smacking Snap playfully on the shoulder. “But it’s not like my parents ever read stuff like,” he peers at one of the journal articles he printed out, “El _Boletín Bibliográfico de Antropología Americana_ to me as a kid.”

Maz waves her hands in front of both of them. “Ya parale muchachos, we’ve got work to do.”

“Sí, Doña Maz,” Snap says, heading to the back so he can put his apron on. He shoots Poe a playful smile, which Poe returns.

Poe puts the papers away into his backpack and goes to wash his hands. As he goes, he glances out the store window into the street. New York never really sleeps, so even now when the sky is still dark in the early hours of the morning, he can see some cars passing by, a handful of people walking down the street.

His day gets busier once he puts his apron on, the logo for Maz’s Coffee Shop on the front and his worn nametag carefully set. The espresso machine starts getting some trouble so they need to rely on the other one left to do double the work, the cookies and cakes that Maz makes in the back of the shop need to cool and sit out front in the display case, and there are far, _far,_ too many people who want frappuccinos.

The sugar-infested concoctions mock him with their syrup, with the time they require, with the way each one requires his individual attention otherwise he will have to start over because he used two pumps of hazelnut and one of vanilla instead of one of hazelnut and two of vanilla. Each one personally invades his time, his mind, his space. Each one comes into his home, wreaks its havoc and leaves, hurling a slur at him as an afterthought. Poe gives them to the customer with a smile.

Most of the people who come into the shop are regulars, people who’ve lived in this corner of NYC for years and know everyone by name. It’s not surprising considering how small the shop is, hidden in a little nook of the city. By lunchtime, most of their business has come and gone, the pastry display heavily ravaged. Poe cleans and mans the front of the store while Snap helps Maz with the baked goods in the back, the lull comforting.

The door jingles and Poe raises his head from the table he’s wiping off. A man steps into the store, wiping away the rain from a pair of glasses in his hand. He sets the pair back on his face, shooting Poe a warm smile.

Poe turns into a puddle right then and there.

The man looks up at the menu, glancing at it briefly as Poe goes back behind the counter. “Hi,” Poe says, clearing his throat. “How can I help you?”

The man’s eyes fall on him again, warm and brown and kind. “Can I just get a vanilla latte and-” he takes a glance over at the display case, “-two of those cookies, please?” 

“Coming right up,” Poe replies. “For here or to go?”

The man’s eyes flit over Poe’s face, too fast for Poe to track. “For here,” he says finally. 

Poe nods, rings him up. “Have a seat, it’ll be ready in a minute.” He heads over to the steam machine, takes some extra time to make a little leaf on the top of the porcelain cup. Poe’s no artist, but it’s the best he can do. Carefully grabbing the best galletas de tres colores in the display, he heads over to the man who took a seat next to the window.

The man looks up as Poe approaches, shoots him another smile. “Thanks,” he says. His coat now rests folded over the back of his chair, over the soft leather. He’s wearing a soft purple sweater beneath, the spectacles on his nose still slightly wet from the rain. The man is an academic dream.

“You’re welcome,” Poe says. He heads back to work, wiping down the tables while the man sits, pulls out a book, eats. Some other customers come in, and he attends them. Then there’s a lull again, and Poe glances over at Finn from the top of the espresso machine. Then Snap and Maz emerge, ask him to help bring the pastries to the front. By the time that Poe comes back out, the man is gone.

-

“¡Necesitamos más azúcar!” Karé says over the din of the shop, Cuban accent cutting sharply across the noise. It’s rush hour, the small shop filled to the brim with people waiting for their daily fix.

“Debe de estar detrás de los filtros,” Poe replies. “So that’ll be $7.03,” he says to the customer with a quick smile.

“¡No está!”

“Pregúntale a Maz entonces, debe de tenerla en la cocina.” The espresso machine is whirring as fast as it will go, strained by the influx of people and Poe isn’t sure how much longer it’s going to last.

“Ok, cover for me mientras.” With that, Karé heads into the back, leaving Poe to deal with the swarm of people in front of him. Most are kind, others impatient as they’re late for work. He’s all but running behind the counter, calling out people’s names and preparing coffee and taking orders in Karé’s absence. Thankfully she comes back only a couple of minutes later, a large sack of sugar triumphantly in hand.

“Hi, what can I get you?” Poe asks as he heads back into the counter, tapping the ordering screen and signing back in while he grabs a marker from his front apron pocket to scribble down a name.

“Can I get a medium white chocolate mocha please?” the person says.

“Name?”

“Finn.”

Poe looks up, recognizes the voice and the same kind features from a couple of days ago. He smiles despite himself. “Uh, anything else?”

“Another cookie if you’ve got any left,” Finn says.

“Yeah we do,” Poe says, not even glancing at the display case and already preparing himself to beg Maz. “Just a minute.”

Poe takes Finn’s cash, their fingers brushing for a moment before Finn steps aside for the next person in line. He takes the next couple of orders and sends them off to Karé while heading into the back for pastries. He all but kisses Maz at the sight of the galletas sitting on the counter to cool. Then he runs back out, eyes scanning for Finn. “White chocolate mocha and cookie for Finn!” he calls out, grabbing the drink and cookie. Finn emerges from the masses, glances at Poe’s apron. “Thanks, Poe,” he says.

“Of course, Finn,” Poe replies, shooting a smile. He can’t linger long, gets called back to take more orders. When the rush hour calms, it’s as though a storm passed through the coffee shop, milk and sugar spilled and pastries depleted, Poe and Karé exhausted from the effort. Poe glances around, but Finn is gone. He struggles not to feel disappointed, sets to work cleaning up instead.

Karé is next to him a moment later, smirk growing on her face. “So hey, who’s Finn?” she asks.

“What?” Poe says, trying to be dismissive. “Oh, nothing. A customer, I think.”

“ _Uh huh,_ ” Karé says, unbelieving. “And that’s why you were making gaga eyes at him earlier?”

“Um, I think the espresso machine needs to get cleaned, so-” with that, he makes a quick exit, Karé’s laugh trailing behind him.

Poe says goodbye to the student that stayed behind, takes a breath. His brain is tired from leading discussions all day, sending emails and talking to students. He feels like he’s behind on his research, but there’s not much else he can do that day before heading to work in the coffee shop. He walks down the university campus, it’s towering architecture reminding him of the strict rigidity of academia and pressing deadlines. But that’s for another time, another moment. Some people wave at him on the way, thankfully none of them pause to talk.

The bus from campus to the shop is quiet, and he presses his head against the glass momentarily. Then finally he arrives, pushing the door open and greeting Snap as he comes in for the evening shift.

“Hey Snap,” Poe greets.

“Hey Poe,” Snap replies, voice low. “No tengas esa cara de comemierda, tu novio está aquí.”

“¿Mi novio?” Poe echoes, confused. “Snap, you know I don’t have a boyfriend.”

“¿No? ¿Y ese guapo que está allí sentado junto a la ventana?” he gestures his head to the window.

Finn is sitting there, cup of coffee resting on the table alongside his half finished cookie, eyes flitting across the book in his hand. Poe straightens somewhat, runs his fingers through his hair to arrange his curls into some semblance of order.

Snap laughs. “Tú lo quieres,” he sing-songs.

“Shut up!” Poe hisses. “Karé shouldn’t have said anything.”

“Well even if Karé didn’t say anything, I do have eyes myself, you know.” Snap raises his brows. “Go on, get changed and ask el guapo over there if he wants a refill.”

Poe grumbles but does it anyways. He checks in, puts his bag away and ties his apron around his waist. If he takes a few extra moments while washing his hands in the bathroom to make sure that his hair is a little nicer and straightening his apron - well that’s just professionalism at work.

He comes out of the bathroom feeling a little more put together, but he makes sure to do a couple of small things, cleaning things over in the front so as to appear casual. Judging by Snap’s snort, the charade is failing. Poe shoots him a glare and heads over to Finn, putting a smile on his face. “Hey,” he says.

Finn looks up, blinking twice before he smiles. “Hey Poe,” he greets.

“Hey Finn.”

Snap snorts.

Poe clears his throat. “Um, I just wanted to know if you uh, wanted a refill or anything else?”

“Yeah - Yeah actually that’d be nice.” Finn replies. “I had a um, a caramel latte.”

Poe smiles. “Coming right up.”

Snap gives him a knowing look that Poe decidedly ignores.

When Poe comes back out, drink in tray, Finn’s brows are furrowed over the book again, muttering to himself. Poe sets down the tray carefully, and when he speaks his voice is curious. “What’s got you so stressed?”

Finn glances away from his book, turning his face to Poe once he sees it’s him. “Oh, it’s uh - study book. I’ve got a neuro exam on Friday.”

Poe hums. “You’re in school?”

“Med school, yeah.”

Internally, Poe screams because _of course_ his crush is personally trying to kill him with how amazing he is. Externally, he lets out a low whistle. “Impressive. Where at?”

“Columbia.”

Poe shoots him a smile. “Oh hey, me too.”

Finn’s brows rise, and he shoots him a brilliant smile. “You’re in med school too?”

“No, the grad school. I’m in the history department.”

“Also impressive. How long have you been?”

Poe takes a quick glance around the coffee shop. There’s nobody around but them. He takes a seat. “I’m in my fourth year. I’m glad to be back in the city I grew up in after doing my undergrad in Seattle.”

“Why Seattle?” Finn asks.

“Wanted to get away for a little bit. I don’t recommend going though,” he adds, making a face. “Too many white people.”

Finn laughs. “Fair enough.”

Poe’s face warms. Finn’s smile is brilliant, and kind, and he wants to make Finn look like that again. Poe clears his throat. “Enough about me though, what about you? You don’t seem like you’re from the city.”

Finn’s brows quirk up. “What gave me away?”

Poe’s gaze flickers over Finn without even thinking about it. “You can kind of just tell,” he says, meeting Finn’s eyes again. “It’s certainly not a bad thing.” With that he shoots a playful smile. “Just please don’t say you’re from Jersey.”

Finn smiles. “Not even close,” he says, setting the book aside. Finn shoots Poe a sheepish smile. “I’m from Georgia, originally. Moved to LA for undergrad and some work for a bit, and I moved here around four months ago.”

“Do I hear a little bit of that Georgian drawl slipping through?” Poe asks, lips curving into a smile. 

“That you do,” Finn says, letting a little more slip out. “Took me a while to get rid of the accent in LA,” he says, looking at Poe through his lashes. “Sure does help when I want to get someone’s attention though.”

There’s a beat. Poe feels a knot of tension curling in his gut, nerves fluttering under his skin as he holds Finn’s gaze. He clears his throat. “Do you uh - Would you wanna - um-”

Snap calls out from behind the counter, “¡Dile que sus ojos son tan profundos que te vas a ahogar!”

The tension shatters, and Poe’s face burns red. He turns to glare at Snap. “¿No tienes algo más ‘pa hacer?” he says indignantly. Snap laughs, hiding from them both by heading to the back. Poe turns back to Finn, scrambling to form some kind of lie to cover for Snap. “Sorry, um, Snap says I gotta go clean the espresso machine. I’ll uh, talk to you later though?”

Something flutters across Finn’s face, but he smiles at Poe all the same, and that’s all that matters at that moment. “Sure, I need to get back to studying anyways. Have fun with the espresso machine.”

Poe nods just a couple times more than necessary before he heads to the back of the shop, ignoring the espresso machine completely. Snap is sitting on the bench they squeezed in there for Maz to rest on while baking, his face twisted into a gleeful grin. One glance at Poe’s face sends him into a fit of laughter.

Poe grabs a spare towel and throws it at him. “Te odio, ¿lo sabes?”

“Don’t be like that - Listen, you weren’t asking him out so I thought you could use some pointers!” Snap says in between fits of laughter.

Poe scoffs. “Uh huh, because I need some pointers from you.” 

“Me and Karé are together, aren’t we?” Snap counters. 

“And you wooed her with brilliant lines like - what was it you told me to say - oh, ‘your eyes are so deep that I'll drown in them’?” Poe says, crossing his arms.

Snap smirks at him. “Absolutely. If you tried it, you'd know.”

“Shut up, Snap.” Poe heads back to the front, getting to work on the espresso machine regardless. Some customers come in, and when the sky darkens a bit more, Finn waves at him on his way out.

-

Elvis Crespo plays loudly over the speakers in the back of the shop, and Maz and Karé take turns between dancing and cleaning. Poe and Snap are unloading things from the truck, restocking for the week.

“Doña Maz,” Poe says over the music, trying to grab her attention. “Where do you want these?”

“Put them over there by the lower cabinet and replace the ones we have in front,” she replies, doing a quick spin with the broom.

“Oiga Doña Maz ten cuidado, you’re going to hurt something,” Snap says as he comes in, setting a box of flavored syrup down on the table.

“Ay, los jóvenes y sus preocupaciones. Estoy bien Snap, but if you’re so worried about my health then you and Karé should start on giving me those grandbabies.”

“Doña, ya tu sabes que me and Snap don’t plan on having kids,” Karé says, running a rag over the counter. “Can you imagine este gorgo being a dad?”

“The kid’s first word would be ‘coño,’” Poe adds helpfully as he re-enters the kitchen. 

Snap shoots him a withering look, but he can’t quite hide the amusement that threatens to overcome his face. “No sean pendejos,” he says, mock hurt.

“Oh gordo, you know we love you,” Karé says, stepping closer. They press a quick kiss to each other’s lips to makeup.

Maz shakes her head. “This is a curse. First I don’t want any children of my own, and then when I want grandchildren you’re not even giving me that.”

“Yeah well Poe might be able to fix that soon won’t you, Poe?” Snap says with a smirk.

“Oh?” Maz says, turning her gaze to Poe. He curses Snap in his head. “Poe,” she begins, “What have you not told me?”

“¡Poe tiene novio!” Snap singsongs. 

“¿Un novio?” Maz asks, face lighting up.

“¡Un novio!” Karé confirms. “I saw him making little ojitos at him the other day.” They all stop to look at him expectantly. 

Poe grabs a stray rag, feeling warmth spread up to his cheeks. He’s going to kill Snap later. “He’s not my boyfriend,” he says, heading out to the truck to grab another box. The three follow him out to convene like the little chismosos they are.

“Well he would be your boyfriend if you actually asked him out!” Karé says.

“Wait, what is going on exactly?” Maz asks, turning to Snap and Karé.

“This cute guy named Finn has been coming into the shop and he and Poe have been flirting and checking each other out but Poe hasn’t asked him out yet,” Karé summarizes.

Maz turns to Poe, hands on her hips. “ _Poe._ Is this why you’ve been using your nice hair gel lately?”

“It’s nothing!” Poe says as he carries the box inside. Finn is just - friendly.”

“I tried helping him the other day, you know with like a nice compliment Poe could give him, pero este coño nomas echo un patín directo a la cocina.”

“I did not _run_ to the kitchen,” Poe mumbles. “Ok am I the only one who’s going to carry the inventory today?” he asks, trying to change the subject.

“Pégate al agua, felo,” Karé says, trying to get Poe back on subject. “We’re talking about this! It’s exciting!”

Maz clicks her tongue. “Ay, déjalo lla. We need to finish inventory anyways.”

Karé and Snap grumble but they head back to work. 

Poe blows a sigh of relief. “Gracias, Doña,” he says.

“Oh don’t thank me. You’re getting hell for not telling me about this sooner.” Maz says good-naturedly. She pats him on the shoulder and laughs at the look on Poe’s face before heading back to work. Poe groans and stares up at the sky for any mercy that may befall him. 

-

Finn comes in a couple of days later. Poe is working the front, and he runs his hands carefully over his apron to smoothen any lines on it. He used his nice hair gel that morning and he’s hoping that it hasn’t been completely ruined by the morning rush. Finn smiles at him, orders another sickeningly sweet cup of coffee. He ignores the knowing smirk that Karé sends his way.

“How’d the exam go?” Poe asks as he prepares the coffee. Finn decided to sit on one of the chairs closest to the counter today, and Poe’s not sure whether that’s good or whether that’s just going to make him all the more distracted from Finn’s gaze on him.

“Well enough, I hope,” Finn shrugs. “Could’ve gone worse.”

“I’m sure you did great.” Finn’s eyes are warm when Poe meets them. The machine whistles at him, tearing Poe’s gaze away.

Finn clears his throat. “So, I’m new to the city. What do y’all do for fun around here?”

Poe answers him. The day’s slow, so he leans on the counter, raves about the galleries in Chelsea and the musicians on the Lower East Side. Finn listens to him rave, asks a couple of questions and mentions that he plays violin. That of course leads into a conversation about how he learned to play and the time all of the strings broke once during a performance.

Poe winces in sympathy. “What’d you do?”

“I did what I had to,” Finn says seriously. “I held the strings down with my arm and kept playing.”

Poe laughs, and Finn joins him. “You couldn’t ask for new strings?” Poe asks amusedly.

“I was twelve!” Finn defends, taking another sip of his coffee. “It seemed like a good idea at the time.”

“Did your parents film that at least?”

Finn groans. “Yeah, they played the video nonstop for weeks afterwards.”

“That’s adorable,” Poe says.

“More like mortifying.” Finn settles back into his seat. “But come on, it’s not like you don’t have any embarrassing childhood stories.”

“Oh you definitely don’t want to know about my childhood,” Poe says. “I was an accident-prone mess.”

Finn tilts his head and brings his cup up to his lips. “C’mon, I told you mine, now you tell me yours.” Finn smiles at Poe, a soft thing that causes warmth to spread from his entire body.

Karé’s voice rings out across the coffee shop, “Oye Poe, ¿por qué no le dices a tu novio que se case contigo ya?”

“¡Ponte a trabajar!” Poe shoots back, face red. “Um, I gotta get back to work,” he tells Finn, apologetic.

Finn shrugs, his smile making Poe’s legs turn to jelly. “Saved by the yell. But you’re definitely telling me something embarrassing later, Dameron.”

Poe blurts out the first thing that comes to mind. “It’s a date, then.” His whole face grows warm at the words and he whirls around before he can say anything even more embarrassing.

-

A month passes, then two. Poe learns more about Finn, starts wearing his nice hair gel more often. They set into a routine where Finn comes in during the afternoons, usually studying, sometimes just reading. They talk about everything under the sun, from books to shows to the ethics of extraterrestrial contact. Each time, Poe tries to get the guts to ask Finn out, but doesn’t at the last minute. His crush blooms, grows stronger with each time he sees Finn until all it takes is the bell of the shop to ring and his heart flutters. The comments continue despite Poe’s protests.

-

Snap clicks his tongue. “Si ese muchacho fuera pecado, tú caminarías feliz al infierno.”

-

“Te van a salir arrugas si sonríes tanto, y entonces qué ‘va hacer ese guapo tuyo?” Karé says.

-

Even Maz joins in on the fun at Poe’s expense. She’s the worst of them all.

-

Finn enters the shop, shoots a smile in Poe’s direction. Maz does a high pitched hum and shakes her head at Poe at the enamoured look on his face. “Cada vez que lo miras se te _para,_ ”

“ _-Doña-_ ”

“-el corazón.” She ends the phrase with a smirk that transforms into a full belly laugh at the mortified look on Poe’s face.

-

It’s snowing. It’s the first frost of the year, bringing with it the infamous New York chill. Poe warms his hands in front of the oven when he gets into work, sending a quick thanks for the warmth of the coffee shop. Once that’s done he heads out to the front, prepares customers their drinks as they sip comfortably and warm their hands from the winter’s bitter chill.

Finn comes in some time later. At first, Poe doesn’t even recognize him, bundled up in a large coat and a fluffy hat and a scarf wrapped around the majority of his face. But Finn emerges beneath it all, nose tinted pink from the cold and rubbing his hands together for warmth. It’s the most adorable sight Poe’s ever seen. He orders his drink and sits down by the window.

Poe’s heart beats a sharp staccato in his chest. He resolves himself. Then with a final check of his reflection from the shine of the espresso machine, Poe grabs Finn’s order and heads over to his table. Finn smiles when he looks up, offering Poe a seat. And it goes about like every day, only at some point Finn pulls out a bag of plantains, offering some to Poe. 

Snap whistles as he passes by, rag in his hand. “Entonces a tu novio le gusta comer plátano,” he says suggestively.

“Y a ti no?” a voice says, quick as a shot. Poe’s face snaps around, and his eyes grow wide as Finn continues in a perfect Mexican accent, “A mi me encantan porque dependiendo de mi pareja, pueden ser el aperitivo o el curso principal.”

“Oh _shit._ ” Snap’s smirk disappears. With the speed of a rocket he quickly collects himself and books it to the back of the coffee shop and out of sight. For a moment, Poe wishes he could join him.

Instead, he stares dumbfoundead at Finn, his mouth slack and his face steadily becoming warmer and warmer. The moments stretch on into eons as Finn smirks after Snap and then turns his gaze back to Poe. The very air thickens with the realization of what had just happened. Slowly, then all at once, Finn’s phase morphs from smooth confidence to dawning realization and outright mortification.

The sight is so striking that Poe can’t help but burst out laughing. And Finn’s stunned look only drives him further into hysterics, and he’s laughing so hard that he has to lean against the nearby table. He takes a steadying breath and says, “I’ve been trying to hide my coworker’s bullshit for _months,_ and you - you’ve known everything that they’ve been saying this whole time?”

Finn’s face turns sheepish. “The first time I thought they were just kidding,” he shrugs. “I mean you said some lie about that being a work thing to try and cover it up so I just - and, well, after that I didn't know how to bring it up.”

Poe is mortified. But the expression on Finn’s face is so endearing that he can’t help but laugh again. And then Finn joins in, and they both realize the complete foolishness of their situation. Finally, Poe takes a gasping breath, and they manage to compose themselves into some semblance of composure. Finn wipes a stray tear away from the corner of his eye, and his face is flush from laughter, and his gaze warm. “You know,” Finn begins with a cough. “I um. I wasn’t lying about uh - the whole plantain thing.”

Their gazes meet. And there’s a warmth there, an openness that captivates Poe and shoots electricity up his spine until his whole body hums with the force of it. His eyes flick down to Finn’s mouth briefly before shooting back up again. With a swallow, he says, “Do you wanna, um, go out some time?”

Finn’s lips curl into a smile soft smile. “Thought you’d never ask.”

**Author's Note:**

> The quote from the beginning is from a Guatemalan newspaper called Prensa Libre. The article is talking about some of the people who were forced to “disappear” during the Guatemalan Civil War. Here's the link:  
> http://www.prensalibre.com/guatemala/justicia/guatemala-identifican-desaparecidos-durante-la-guerra  
> Also, I am Mexican-American but I have characters from other countries in this fic like Guatemala, Colombia, and the Dominican Republic, and my own Spanish is different in that it’s more geared towards Spanglish. So hey, if you happen to be Latino and know Spanish better/have suggestions for this fic or it’s possible ( _possible_ ) continuation, please feel free to reach out in a comment below or on [my tumblr.](pastandfuturequeen.tumblr.com)  
> As always, thanks for reading, and please feel free to leave kudos, comments, or criticism below!  
> -
> 
> **Translations**
> 
> _[Opening Scene]_
> 
> Doña = Mrs. (It’s a more respectful way of saying Mrs., usually reserved for people you deeply respect. The male equivalent is Don).  
> Míralo a éste = Look at this guy.  
> No jodas tanto, coño. = Don’t fuck around so much, dude. (Coño is used as “dude” but it’s not something you should really say around someone’s parents if you wanna impress them with your Spanish).  
> Ya lo se = I already know it.  
> Ya parale muchachos = Stop it boys.  
> -
> 
> _[With Karé During Rush Hour]_
> 
> ¡Necesitamos más azúcar! = We need more sugar!  
> Debe de estar detrás de los filtros = It should be behind the (coffee) filters.  
> ¡No está! = It’s not here.  
> Pregúntale a Maz entonces, debe de tenerla en la cocina = Ask Maz then, she should have some in the kitchen.  
> -  
>  _[When Poe Comes to the Coffee Shop after University]_
> 
> No tengas esa cara de comemierda, tu novio está aquí. = Don’t have that shit-eating face, your boyfriend’s here.  
> ¿Mi novio? = My boyfriend?  
> ¿No? ¿Y ese guapo que está allí sentado junto a la ventana? = No? And that hot guy that’s sitting over by the window?  
> Tú lo quieres = You like him.  
> ¡Dile que sus ojos son tan profundos que te vas a ahogar! = Tell him his eyes are so deep that you’re going to drown in them!  
> ¿No tienes algo más ‘pa hacer? = Don’t you have anything better to do?  
> -
> 
> _[In the Kitchen Doing Inventory]_
> 
> Oiga Doña Maz ten cuidado = Hey Mrs. Maz be careful  
> Ay, los jóvenes y sus preocupaciones. Estoy bien Snap, = Oh, you youngins and your worries. I’m okay Snap.  
> Doña, ya tu sabes que me and Snap don’t plan on having kids = Mrs., you already know me and Snap don’t plan on having kids.  
> Este gordo = This fattie (In most Latino cultures it’s very common to give each other nicknames like fattie or blondie or skinny. It’s neither meant to be nor received as an actual insult between friends/family).  
> No sean pendejos = Don’t be bitches. (There’s no real direct translation here. It’s playful.)  
> ¡Poe tiene novio! = Poe has a boyfriend!  
> Pero este coño nomas echo un patín directo a la cocina = But this dude just booked it into the kitchen. (This is not a direct translation, it’s just a Cuban phrase).  
> Pégate al agua, felo = Don’t change the subject (Again, not direct translation, it’s another Cuban thing).  
> Ay, déjalo lla = Oh, leave him be.  
> -
> 
> _[Everyone Fucking with Poe]_
> 
> Oye Poe, ¿por qué no le dices a tu novio que se case contigo lla? = Hey Poe, why don’t you ask your boyfriend to marry you already?  
> ¡Ponte a trabajar! = Go do your work!  
> Si ese muchacho fuera pecado, tú caminarías feliz al infierno = If that boy were a sin, you’d happily walk into hell.  
> Te van a salir arrugas si sonríes tanto, y entonces qué ‘va hacer ese guapo tuyo? = You’re gonna get wrinkles if you smile so much, and then what’s that hottie of yours gonna do?  
> Cada vez que lo miras se te _para,_ -el corazón = Every time you see him your heart stops. (Okay this takes a little bit more explanation but basically what makes this funny is the pause because the word “para” can mean both “stand” and “stop.” So if you end the phrase with “se te para” then that’s alluding to Poe getting a boner because the subject of the sentence is never clarified grammatically. But if you continue the phrase with “se te para el corazón” then you’re clarifying that the subject of the sentence is the heart, which stops rather than stands. If that makes sense?)  
>  -
> 
> _[The Revelation]_
> 
> Entonces a tu novio le gusta comer el plátano = So your boyfriend likes to eat plantains, huh? (Alluding to a blowjob).  
> A mi me encantan porque dependiendo de mi pareja, pueden ser el aperitivo o el curso principal. = I love them (plantains) because depending on the person I’m with, they can be an appetizer or the main course. (Finn’s alluding based off of Snap’s setup).


End file.
